Government urges private sector to exchange security information

Washington -- A government official told attendees at the American Hotel & Lodging Assn.'s Legislative Action Summit about the need for the private business sector and the government to exchange information that pertains to keeping the country safe and free from terrorism.

Alfonso Martinez-Fonts, special assistant to the secretary for the private sector for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said hotels are considered soft targets for terrorism and are in the same category as stadiums, malls and churches. Martinez-Fonts said the DHS will be traveling throughout the country disseminating information about potential risks. He said hoteliers need to send information to the government about their hotels' vulnerabilities or if there are any security incidents.

"You are perceived by the Department of Homeland Security as people who want to do the right thing," he told attendees. "There's a need for you to be in a constant security mode of improvement so we can keep the country safe from terrorism."

"Other than the airline industry, there's not an industry more affected by the potential of being a target by terrorists," said U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.). "Terrorism makes this world very, very complex."

Martinez-Fonts said the government constantly is walking the fine line of balancing guest privacy and government protection.

"We want to make sure we don't impinge on freedoms of this country as we secure our homeland," he said. "If we do, we lose the war on terror.

"Information sharing and analysis centers help the country be more secure. There needs to be an exchange of information from a sector to the government and vice versa," he said. "We're trying to make sure we can alert the public of information that is timely and accurate and actionable. At the border, we need to be fast and secure. We can't do one and not the other."

jwalsh@advanstar.com

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